Have You Heard About... Humans of New York

… the people who live, work and play in one of the biggest cities on earth? Brandon Stanton took pictures from his popular blog, Humans of New York, to make a book of the same name. At its heart, it is just that — photographs of people somewhere in New York — but it is also much more.

These are people from all walks of life — old and young, male and female (and some where it’s hard to tell), every race and ethnicity you can imagine, long-time residents and new immigrants and tourists, crowds and small groups and individuals and close-up shots that only show part of the person. Many of the pictures are simply captioned by location, “Seen in Crown Heights, Brooklyn,” or “Seen in the Meatpacking District.” Others have simple comments by the photographer or his subject, “Two ages, same beauty,” and “I’m a time traveler.” A few have longer explanations or discussions with the people being photographed. One picture is accompanied by the caption, “Some days I worry that I won’t find anyone to photograph. Then I turn the corner and see a giant tree man.”

This is a fascinating book. Some parts are wonderfully funny or moving, and others are very sad or distressing. Above all, though, it is a book about people and everything that makes us human.